Chasing Ice

2012 • 75 minutes

About this movie

In the spring of 2005, acclaimed National Geographic photographer James Balog headed to the Arctic on a tricky assignment: to capture images to help tell the story of the Earth's changing climate. Even with a scientific upbringing, Balog had been a skeptic about climate change and a cynic about the nature of academic research. But that first trip north opened his eyes to the biggest story in human history. Chasing Ice is a feature documentary about one man's mission to change the tide of history by gathering undeniable evidence of our changing planet. Within months of that first trip to Iceland, Balog conceived the boldest expedition of his life: The Extreme Ice Survey. With a band of young adventurers in tow, Balog began deploying revolutionary time-lapse cameras across the brutal Arctic, by helicopter, canoe, and dogsled, to capture a multi-year record of the world's changing glaciers. Battling untested technology in subzero conditions, Balog finds himself at the end of his tether, risking both his career and his well-being. As the debate polarizes America and the intensity of natural disasters ramps up globally, he comes face to face with his own mortality. It takes years for him to see the fruits of his labor. But his hauntingly beautiful videos compress those years into seconds. His Extreme Ice Survey captures ancient mountains of ice in motion as they disappear at a breathtaking rate. Chasing Ice depicts a heroic photojournalist doing everything in his power to deliver hope to our carbon-powered planet.

Ratings and reviews

Although the scenery and photography were good, I didn't like the biased way in which the subject of climate change was presented. Present the facts and let me decide. Do anything else and it looks like your trying to manipulate the viewer. We have enough personal opinion these days in the news media. Scientific data, facts and that's it...I also didn't quite understand why there was so much time dedicated to documenting the knee surgery of the photographer. Didn't he receive grants to complete this film? My suggestion is to pass on this one.

The message was good and their is some breathtaking photography but I have a problem with it being a movie that was more about James Balog than anything else. Many great explorers and such have gone to great pains to do what it is we remember them for, but most are not nearly so self involved. I mean sorry James but I could care less about your knee or how you weep when cameras don't work. Please fill in those portions of film with your skilled photography and I promise you'll be far more loved.

This movie did a great job not only showing the climate control issues were having but how hard it is for scientists to get the message out to the public. After watching this there's no way a person can not understand the issues in our world.